Always Summer (2 page)

I can’t help but laugh. He makes a good
point, but he’s forgetting who he’s dealing with.

“Seriously? A.J. Gonzalez and Colby Taylor
are my best friends,” I say. I turn my entire body to completely
face him. “And in case you forgot, I handle PR and make your
completely unmarketable and currently handicapped best friend look
good for the surf industry.”

Topher surprisingly keeps a straight face,
and for half a second, I worry that maybe I’ve crossed the line by
stating the brutally honest facts about Miles.

“You’re right,” he says, cracking a smile.
“You’re a rock star. You can totally handle me.”

“Speaking of Colby and your best friend,
shouldn’t you be moving in with them today?” I ask.

Topher quickly shakes his head. “Not while
Miles is over there hobbling on one leg and barking out orders,” he
says. “I know he feels useless and wants to help, but sometimes, he
just needs to get out of the way and stop trying because he only
makes it worse. So I’m moving my stuff in later.”

He stares at the hardwood floor, swinging
his leg back and forth. “I’ve been staying here. I know I’m mad at
Vin, but it’s just too weird being at the apartment without him,”
he says. “It’s too quiet, and I feel completely alone.”

“So you stay here, in an empty house where
you know the guy who owns it will never come home?” I ask.

I feel like that would be ten times worse.
At least Vin can physically come back if he decides to. Topher said
it himself – Shark isn’t coming home.

Topher looks up from his flip-flops. The
smirk on his face is adorably scary. “See, that’s where you’re
wrong,” he says in a sly tone. “I came home today, and there was a
pretty girl waiting on the porch for me, so this is a much better
option.”

“Technically, I was waiting for Shark
McAllister,” I correct him.

He shrugs. “Sorry, babe, but you’re stuck
with the next best thing.”

“I just think it’s better if you guys go in
my place,” Joe says from the swivel chair behind the desk.

It’s weird seeing Shark’s dad sitting here,
grabbing the phone and sifting through e-mails in the Drenaline
Surf office.

Even though I know he’s hundreds of miles
away working on mechanical crap for oil rigs, I keep expecting to
walk in here one morning and see Vin sitting in that black chair,
bitching about inventory while paying invoices and running
payroll.

“Look, the store will run just fine without
you here today,” Joe reassures us. “I’m not the target audience for
a new store. I’m old school. It’s better if you see it. You’ll know
if it’s the right fit for us. Besides, it’d be nice for you guys to
represent the company. You’ll be the ones handling things
anyway.”

I dare to glance at Jace, but he’s focused
on the tile flooring, thoughts running through his head like sports
scores at the bottom of an ESPN channel. I want to feel sorry for
him because I know how stressful this job can be, but he’s the one
who volunteered for it. He just needs to get out of his own head.
He’s a front-man for a band. If he can entertain a crowd, he can
seal business deals. I need for Jace to believe in himself.

Saying that I miss Vin is absurd because I
don’t miss him – not in the way people would expect. But I miss his
presence here at Drenaline Surf. I miss the way he had everything
under control, even when he didn’t. I miss that confirmation that
no matter what, Drenaline Surf would be okay and it would always
keep going because Vin Brooks wouldn’t let it die. We’re missing
that spark now. Who knew Vin had a spark?

“Take Colby with you,” Joe suggests. “He
needs a break from all this lawsuit drama.”

He doesn’t have to suggest it twice. I
volunteer to call him and dash out of the office as quickly as I
can. I hate to leave Jace in there with the weight of
responsibilities looming over him, but it’s my first day back at
Drenaline Surf since Vin left and this thing with Topher became
official, so I’m feeling completely out of my element. Having my
wingman with me for today might help me readjust to Drenaline Surf
life.

Once Colby agrees to ride with us, I wait in
the back parking lot with Jace.

“I haven’t even started training yet,” he
says, shaking his head while he paces in front of me. “I mean,
yeah, I can run a register and order supplies. I can manage a store
because that’s what I’ve been doing, but there’s a lot I don’t
know.”

Joe gave us a pretty compelling speech this
morning. He was right about some things. It
will
take us a
little while to get resituated and back on track. We
will
have to work together and just try to do the best that we can. And
Joe
does
believe in us, even if we’re unsure about ourselves
at the moment.

Jace walks over to his driver’s side,
leaving me alone on the tailgate, and returns with a cigarette in
his mouth. He flicks a lighter and exhales a cloud of smoke
later.

“Seriously?” I ask. “You’re a vocalist. You
know better.”

“What?” he counters. He holds up the
cigarette. “This? It’s a stress thing. I don’t smoke on a regular
basis. I’m just overwhelmed. I don’t know what I’m doing. Hell, Vin
knew what he was doing and
still
left.”

Vin left because he’s a coward and wouldn’t
ask for help. I bite my tongue so I don’t slip up and say it out
loud. It may be true, but I’m the last person who needs to say it.
I have the ex-girlfriend strike against me, and dating his brother
definitely wouldn’t help my case.

“You’re not Vin, though,” I say, pushing
myself off of the tailgate. Colby’s truck pulls into the parking
lot, and I fixate my eyes on him but continue talking to Jace.
“We’ll get through this. You have A.J. and Topher and me all here
to help you learn how to run this place.”

Jace takes a drag and exhales smoke. I leave
him alone with his nicotine and make my way toward Colby’s truck.
The blonde surfer doesn’t bother to exit his vehicle, so I open the
driver’s side door when I reach him.

“Don’t tell me you’re backing out on us,” I
say, hoping and praying he isn’t because I don’t know Jace well
enough to carry on a conversation for over an hour’s worth of
driving.

Colby shakes his head. “Just looking at
these documents my lawyer e-mailed to me,” he says. “I honestly
can’t believe my parents are trying to sue me. I knew they’d be
pissed or hurt or both, but I never thought this would end up being
a money thing if they found out where I was.”

I glance around the parking lot to make sure
no one is nearby to hear us. “Have you gotten any closer to finding
out who leaked them the info about you?” I ask.

He shakes his head again and locks his
phone. “I don’t even know where to start,” he says. “My parents are
playing it cool, like they just happened to see me on a sports
channel or something, which I know isn’t the truth. Someone tipped
them off, and everything in me says that it was someone connected
to Drenaline Surf, so I don’t trust any of them, especially now
with all the changes around here.”

Colby will never admit it if he misses Vin,
but at least with Vin, he knew what to expect. He knew what he was
walking into each time he entered Drenaline Surf. It may have been
like fire and gasoline, but at least it was expected.

We walk back over to Jace’s truck, where I
claim the passenger seat, and Colby gives Jace half-truths about
what his lawyer has been telling him. Jace doesn’t seem to pick up
on the fact that Colby isn’t very trusting of him yet, which is a
good thing. We can’t afford any more tension than what’s already
here.

“First day on the job and you get to hang
out with Damage Control and her Damaged Goods,” Colby says. “Do you
feel like the boss yet?”

“Not quite but maybe we’re getting there.
Hold on,” Jace says just before cranking up his truck. “Joe’s
calling me.”

He steps outside, looks at the store for a
moment, and then nods his head, although Joe can’t see him from
here. I wonder if there’s been a change of plans. I don’t really
want to go to the outskirts of Sunrise Valley to see an empty lot
and floor plans, but at the same time, I don’t want to be in the
actual store today. Topher and Emily are both working. That would
lead to awkward moments with him and excited squealing from her,
and none of that fits my agenda for telling people about Topher and
me.

Jace opens his door and rests his arm
against the doorframe. “Logan’s going with us,” he says. “Joe
thinks it’s a good idea, and Logan really doesn’t have anything
else to do since he’s not working in the store.”

Colby groans, channeling some kind of
growling sea creature from the dinosaur age. I don’t call him out
on it because that sound defines exactly what I feel upon hearing
Logan’s name. Couldn’t they have sent Miles and his crutches
instead? At least we could just feed him to shut him up. Logan is a
perfect stranger to us.

“Why all the hostility?” Jace asks, fighting
a smile. “I mean, he’s one of us, right? Drenaline Surf family? I
mean, of all people, I expected the two of you to be more accepting
of him than the rest of us.”

That’s what stings. I’m not sure if it’s the
fact that Jace is right – we are outsiders who should understand –
or if it’s the fact that Jace just referenced us, indirectly of
course, as the outsiders of the Drenaline Surf family. Colby and I
aren’t from here. We’re from the east coast, just like Logan. We
haven’t been born into this surf culture family. Even Vin, who
hates the ocean and hates surfing and hates everything about the
Californian hang-ten lifestyle, belongs here more than we do.

Colby clears his throat, but he’s probably
choking down another groan and trying to hide it.

“We don’t know his story,” he says. “No one
knows the first thing about Logan Riley. How can we trust him with
Shark’s legacy when he’s just a name that pops up every now and
then and wins the Sunrise Valley Tournament?”

“He hasn’t made an effort to know anyone
here,” I add, hoping to back Colby’s case. “Colby made a point to
meet people when he arrived. Linzi and I did the same thing last
summer. Have you seen Logan around? Do you ever see him inside the
store? I’ve seen him like three times since he got here.”

Jace shrugs his shoulders and gets back into
his truck. “Maybe he doesn’t have a story, you know?” he asks. “Not
everyone is tabloid-worthy. I’m just saying.”

As much as I want to glance behind me and
see the fury carved into Colby’s face, I don’t dare turn around.
Instead, I look out the window toward Drenaline Surf. Within a few
seconds, the back door of the office opens, and Joe points at
Jace’s truck. Logan smiles his modelesque smile before shaking
hands with Joe and walking our way.

He wears a light blue polo shirt and khaki
cargo shorts. His summer tan is darker than I remember, and natural
highlights streak his hair. He looks so clean-cut and
magazine-cover-worthy. This boy isn’t tabloid fodder.
Unfortunately, my sidekick in the backseat is.

Colby slides over behind Jace to let Logan
sit behind me. Neither of them speak when Logan enters the vehicle.
Jace looks at me, like he’s waiting for me to break the ice, but
when I remain frozen as well, he takes it upon himself to turn
around and attempt introductions.

“I’m sure you already know who we are, but
I’m Jace Hudson, Vin’s replacement,” Jace says.

The words feel all too real when he speaks
them. Vin’s replacement. This is Drenaline Surf now. Jace is the
boss. Logan is one of us. And I actually relate to Colby more than
I do the rest of the ‘Drenaline Surf family’ right now. I
definitely didn’t see that coming last summer.

“This is Haley Sullivan. She’s handling
public relations for Drenaline Surf, and I doubt Mr. Taylor needs
any sort of introduction,” Jace continues. The smirk on his face is
reminiscent of the icy chills and thick tension between Vin and
Colby. Maybe nothing’s actually changed at all.

On the hour and a half drive to the edge of
Sunrise Valley, Jace talks about the music store, its lack of
business, and how fortunate he was to be able to step into another
job so quickly, even if he’s sad that Vin left us. He asks Logan
the obligatory questions about where he grew up, what his family is
like, and how he likes Crescent Cove while Colby and I remain
silent. I don’t care if I’m an outsider. This is awkward, and I
don’t want to participate.

“Merge right. Drive zero point two miles.
Turn right,” the robotic lady announces from the GPS.

I angle myself toward the window to take in
the coastline outside of Sunrise Valley. The early afternoon
sunshine bursts in yellow streaks across the ocean, like
watercolors floating over a canvas and trying to shift into a
perfect position before drying to the surface. Jet skis zip through
the waves, and bikini-clad girls tan on the beach. It’s like
summertime never ends here.

“Okay, I think this is the street,” Jace
says, pulling my attention back to the mission at hand.

We make a turn onto Coastline Boulevard, but
I’m certain this isn’t the same street I rode along with Alston
just weeks ago before paying Topher’s entry fee. There was nothing
but sand and sea and a ton of cars.

“This can’t be right,” I say, staring at the
massive building that stretches down the entire block.

It’s the length of three or four football
fields with a second level and floor-to-ceiling windows. A huge
dome wraps around from one end of the building to the other, hiding
whatever may be behind the building. And that’s when I see the
sign.

Future Home of Liquid Spirit Surf Shop and
Wave Park

Colby exhales harshly. “You’re fucking
kidding me,” he says. “Liquid Spirit is opening a wave park? How
unethical is that?”